So “over night” … “out of the bue” Logic Pro X got a major update. Quite a few more or less big or/and small things are new and/or better. Seems like the people at Apple really care about the product. For me Logic Pro X really is the best tool for the money even for Video Post Production, even tho’ its mostly a Music Production App. Its also really good for Video Postporduction and Sound Design.

Here are some of the new features that i think are quite interesting – especially for Video Postproduction:

– Redesigned Compressor plug-in features scalable, Retina-ready interface and 7 models including the new Classic VCA

In my opinion its a great update to the whole Logic Pro X system. I’ll will have a closer look at it in the next few days and use it in some real work audio post production for video project and keep you updated how its goes and how it all works not only on “paper” but in real life.

And also remember here is way Logic Pro X is a great app especially for Final Cut Pro X users:

a quick review of a nice little firewire audio interface and stereo monitor control the t.c. electronic desktop konnekt 6. really good for what is does for the money. i really like the audio quality of the mic input, headphone, monitor outputs and audio interface itself. its well made for the price-range. the audio level meter is a nice feature and is reasonable good. over all a good piece of gear for audio and video editors, even for podcasters I’d might say. So my setup for recording tutorials and stuff like that is the Rode NTG1 connected the the desktop konnekt 6 and its good and clean sounding 48V phantom powered mic (pre-amp) input.

one think about the firewire connection … yes its is Firewire 400 (which is common for a audio interface …. or at least was) now, I know firewire ports are kinda a rare thing on computers these days… but i have to say in compassion to USB its a much more solid connection and i don’t mean that in terms of hardware itself, just the data stream is better. with USB its more likely that you run in to odd issues like odd background noises and stuff (since USB was initially invented to connect hardware like a keyboard or a computer mouse) …. so keep that in mind

I just want to show you some basic ideas in terms of audio editing. This its just a quick overview, you might have your own style and way to do things. Also your application might have different Tools. But this is just a “reminder” so to say of what might be essential to get good edits. Now, i’m usually a bit better, faster & more precise at this kind of editing but i really just wanted you to show some “hints” so you can start to get stuff done or might think about your workflow and stuff.

Its part two and i talk a lil bit about what basic plugin you kinda have to use and what settings you might have to pay attentional to to get a podcast to sound nice or right for that matter.

I talk about basic EQ settings and essential frequencies and Compressor settings and essential hints for getting settings right. Keep in mind I used only the plugins that come with Audition so you kinda can follow a lil better but I usually use other 3rd party plugins (I show some of those as well) so in the end it might not sound as good as it might with the plug-ins i know. I just want you show the basic idea … you always have to make your own experiences and should bring your own taste and workflow into it (after a while). All that is just a start for you. Use your ears. In the end it “just” has to sound & feel right. 😉

Part 3 will be up soon … I will talk and show a lil bit of basic things in terms of audio editing and what is essential there. So stay tuned!

So this is the fist part of three. Its the basics about how i set up my edit-session in Adobe Audition. I talk a lil bit about Levels, Normalization and why its not helping that much if you have not the best recordings (like with a lot of spikes and plopp-sounds and whatnot) or all kinds of level changes and stuff. Its not that exciting… 😉

I promise the 2nd part will be a bit more practical but longer as well….

– EMES Black TV HR Active (unique / rare / kinda good but you really have to get used to them / technically a good concept tho’) around 1400 EUR for a pair

– Genelec 1032a (they are good / really analytic – don’t like the overall sound tho’) around 1800-2000 EUR for a pair

– ME-Geithain RL 904 (unique german brand but quite common / really analytic / don’t like the overall sound tho’ you really have to get used to them) around 2500-3000 EUR for a pair

– Dynaudio BM6A (really loved them , great speakers) around 1300 EUR for a pair

– Fostex pm 0.5 (meh … not so good but better than any common, random plastic PC speaker) around 150-180 EUR for a pair

– KRK RP6 RoKit G2 (one of best speaker I’ve used esp. in that price range … great over all sound / powerful, quite balanced, good low-end, analytic but not too much, you actually can kinda enjoy listing to stuff) around 400 EUR for a pair

and i also used some KRK RP5 RoKit G2 on smaller workstations and as Surround speakers – around 290 EUR for a pair

So i really loved the last setup i had: a KRK 5.1 setup with 3x RP6 ‘s and 2x RP5’s. I used that the longest time and really got familiar with it … enjoyed using it.

But then I changed my Job, I did go freelance (as you might know I work for all kinds of projects and people now – like for ScruffyTV (a lot of Podcast work there in addition to other stuff) and even more so on more audio based / orientated stuff) So anyway, I kinda had to leave my beloved KRK setup at my old workplace.

Anyway … now i thought, well lets see how good the cheaper stuff really is – since i got asked a lot what cheap Studio-Speakers people should get, people who just get started. I did quite some research and it seemed that most small and “cheap” speakers (like most 5″ speakers) are not so good for accurate and have not so good sound reproduction for any sound stuff, esp. if you have a pro’ish approach to / for your work. At the end of the day I was kinda left with really only two “low-priced” options:

First of the Samson Resolv A6. The price in Germany is around 175 EUR for a pair, which is actually quite cheap for a pair of 2-way 6.5″ speakers. And for that, they are actually surprisingly good. Keep in mind of a pair of KRK RP6 (same size, almost same spec’s) you pay around 400 EUR (and even that is considered a lower priced speaker). Now they have a lil bit of a lower end issue in terms of not quite power full and precise in that range (so really not like the KRK’s) But if you have a not so good room that actually can be good (if u have a good listing spot and get used to it)

also they are missing a bit in the higher mid range and maybe a little bit of too much emphasized in the 150-300 Hz area but that really shows only in a few tracks (and if u don’t have a perfect placement of the speakers). Over all they are quite good sounding. They have an open sound. For the price range analytic enough to get pro work done. The Stereo-filed is ok, actually good for a Studio-speaker in that price range. I actually was surprised how much really i can hear single instruments in some tracks / mixes.

They have a lil issue with some white noise in “Standby” but that actually should be not a big issue for mixing at all. You only will notice that when you have nothing playing. And if you want to dial in stuff like “noise reduction” on some audio recordings you always could use headphones to make sure its it ok, but really it’s not that bad at all – really just a little bit white noise.

Now, these speakers are quite big and kinda heavy, so for smaller rooms and for people “on the road” a bit too much maybe.

So for a common Edit-Suite setup it might e bit tricky to get a good placement. They are not as uncomplicated to place to get a good sound out of them. I always had the feeling the placement of the KRK’s was less “complicated”. It kinda was like the KRK’s sounded good everywhere. Anyways, sometimes its better to get smaller speakers (like the KRK RP5 RoKit’s – in that size really nothing comes close in the price range). But I did read that the smaller Samson Resolv A5 are not as good as the these bigger Resolv A6. So that is not really an option.

So, over all quite good speakers for the money. Are they as good as KRK RP6 RoKit’s? …not really. But the Resolv A6 are really usable esp. if you just get stared and have to keep your start-investment costs low. If you get experience with them, get to know them – so to say – you really can get work done!

Technical specs are good: a 2-way 6.5″ woven carbon fibre woofer with 75W, 1″ silk dome tweeter with 25W, (so overall 100W) frequency response is in the 40Hz-30kHz, there are XLR and 1/4″ balanced inputs and unbalanced RCA inputs its AV / magnetically shielded and solid MDF case construction. There is a High Frequency adjustment knob that can be helpful if needed and actually is rare in that price range of speakers. The volume knob is a bit tricky to adjust in lower volume levels so it might take a lil while to get both speakers set to the same level but in the end it works. Oh BTW the low frequency port is on the front … what in my experience is better esp. if you don’t have “perfect” placement of the speakers. (too close to a wall / in a corner)

The other candidates are the M-Audio BX5 – 177 EUR for a pair – (i got the older version so the newer BX5a might be a bit better but overall these are the same). The BX5’s are well made and actually have a good size for smaller rooms and the usual editing suite setup.

In terms of Sound, I’m not so sure. Even though they are quite powerful for the size and have a good strong low-end for the size, they really have a noticeable lag in the mid-range, so they really don’t sound open at all. if you have an orchestral track (movie score) for example there really is all the “wood” and open sound missing… you really have a hard time getting the room and clearness of a mix.

The high range is actually good, maybe a bit too “fine” but quite analytic with a somehow odd “rolloff” tho’. It sounds too sharp in a way.

So in the end I have to say they are not as good as the Samson Resolv 6A. One good thing is tho’ that these speakers are quite common in home studios and even edit suits so people are used to them and it might be possible that you “have to” / might use them at some point.

Technical specs are ok: it’s a overall 70W speaker with a 5″ woofer and 1″ tweeter, magnetically shielded, balanced XLR and balanced/unbalanced TRS inputs, volume control (that actually works good and smooth). The low frequency port is on the back of the speaker … what in my experience is tricky / not so ideal esp. if you don’t have “perfect” placement of the speakers. (too close to a wall / in a corner) so i kinda noticed a bit of a low end “overload” for some tracks i played … not too bad just something you might keep in mind.

In conclusion: If you don’t have the funds, have to save some money you really could get away with the Samson Resolv A6. They really sound good/ok for the money. If you have the funds go with the KRK RP6 RoKit G2 tho’.

I really would not recommend the M-Audio BX5(a) even though they are common (oddly ;-)) and small they really just sound not right / not good enough to compete with the SAMSON’s or even more so with the KRK’s at all.

At the end of the day – if you really want to deliver a good mix – you really should check speakers for yourself – listen to your reference tracks on them.

As for all speakers – even the expensive ones – you have to get to know them, you have to get experienced with them (so to say). But don’t get any random audio speaker that doesn’t sound “right” for you.

… a new Tutorial page is updated and there will be more in the coming weeks & months.
If you have any software or workflow question, please let me know in the comments section i will see to get to it as soon as I can.

FCPX BTS: retiming & conforming footage

Just a quick post about the features I like the most on the TASCAM DR-40

Recording non stop with 48V Phantom powered Mic (Rode NTG-1) on my #Tascam DR-40 … wait for it … 4h..42min..16sec … NON STOP! … and I still have standby time and can record internal stereo mic.

A/B stereo is really nice to capture stereo nat sound fx …love it more than x/y setup. You can switch from A/B to X/Y stereo mic setup really nice and quick.

And probably the best part on the DR-40 are the rock solid XLR inputs …nothing slips out!

That’s about it. A great & solid recorder for the money. The Inputs are a bit noises maybe (really just a bit) but that is no issue if u keep your levels nice and tight and there is a good Limiter as well. I don’t really care about all there other “fancy” recording modes. It’s just nice for recording for Shotgun Mic-Recording for interviews and stuff. And of course for SoundFX (Nat-sound) recordings.

Here is a example – a clip used the Tascam DR-40 with a Rode NTG1 to record the interviews:

Well to make a long story short after todays “discussion” about the sound of trailers especially the kind of bad sound of the latest Batman Trailer here are some of the as i call them reference trailers for good sound design & sound mix. But let me talk about some of the issues I’ve heard – especially today – real quick. There are several things going on that result in a real issue in terms of sound that in the end kinda demolish the whole trailer experience (since many filmmakers say sound is 50% of a movie … well that is also true for the trailer, now isn’t it?!) The First issue is maybe a not so good recording of an dialogue or / and not the best edit or cleaning up of that (maybe even no ADR done yet). Second issue is a some sort of bad mix. Loud Music & too much Sounds playing at the same time. And 3rd … after all that / on top of that a kind of poor encoding at the post facility but also on YouTube.

There also was a lil discussion about how stuff is viewed / listened to … like on Phones or iPads or Notebooks and whatnot… but in the end it should not matter that much, it should sound good on almost every device, shouldn’t it?
I talked a lil bit about that on that blog post a few days back.

But as i said there are some examples of really good work out there that are actually really good. Listen to that and “extract” some “knowledge” about the sound for a film, movie or Project out of all this. All that kinda applies not only to a mix for a big movie or an awesome trailer. So all i want to do with that is to invoke people to care more and think more about sound… that’s all:

oh and BTW that is the Batman trailer that i was talking about … really makes me kinda sad bcuz the trailer it self (pictures and stuff) really is great and so will be the movie in the end (hopefully)
but that is (kinda) just a bit embarrassing especially for a big Hollywood movie.

BTW also take a look at some of the awesome work soundworkscollection is doing with great BTS of the sound work for great movies … here are some of my favorites:

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